Minatures

What is it with my love for minature quilts?  Is it the challenge of taking a large (regular) pattern and making it smaller.  Is it the cuteness of its small size?  Or is it the accomplishement of just doing the pattern and not having the ability (space confined) to make it a normal size?  I think it's the combination of all of the above.

I ADORE minis!

 It  took ME awhile to figure this out about myself.  Other people had figured that out long before I did.

Well I think it's time to do another one.  Even though things are still green around here nights are getting cooler.  I have even spotted some color changes in the trees.  We all know what that means.   My favorite time of year will be approaching soon.  Yellows, Golds, Browns, and Oranges with Black making it all pop!  I have admired roque quilter's mini Burgoynne Surround for ages it seems.  I want one for myself!  I didn't have the minature quilt magazine she used.  I could find a pattern out there.  I even have the quilt along pattern that she based hers on.

Well guess what I found while thumbing through and old book I had.  (Found the book while looking for Sharyn Craig's book I have).  I found Marti Michell's book Quilting for People Who Still Don't Have Time to Quilt.  The section starting on page 155 is Burgoynne Surround.  Ok, no excuses now.

I would like to blog about this journey.  I hope I don't get the "squirrel" effect.  Those that know me well would agree.

I have the pattern.  I have the common size of a piece.  Next is to determine the sizes of the other pieces in the block and pull fabrics.  I'm thinking Halloween fabrics.  I will have to see.  I will try to post pictures at a later date.  If you are reading this...stay tuned.

Blurr....

The last few months are a blur.  I hibernate in the winter.  Many times I don't even know what day of the week it is.  Go to work, go home, sleep, go to work, go home....never ending cycle.

I try to take pictures to document how I have been sewing.  I seem to migrate from one project to another, but I know I'm not the only quilter (sewer) that has this skill!  We are multi-taskers!  Some tasks just take longer to complete.  

I'm a quilter at heart, but I have 2 prom dresses that need to be completed.  By the end of May!  I know I will get them done.  I do seem to work better under pressure and never does procrastination happen here!  My heart wants to quilt.

Working full time and weird hours, I'm beat when I get home.  You would think nights would be an easy time to keep this blog updated.  What seems to hold me up is the transferring of pictures from card to computer.  I thought keeping a tally of stash fabric used on each project and new purchases would help.  It did for a while.  I had wanted to keep track of projects on a monthly basis.  It all came down to just taking pictures.  I figured out how to get the date stamp on the camera.  You have to understand electronic devices and I are not the best of friends.  I still have a "dumb" phone for emergencies.  I do manage to get by.

Spring seems to finally want to be.  We've had a couple of warm days and most of the snow is gone.  The daffodils are starting to sneak out of the ground, tree buds are slowly coming out of their shells, and flood warnings and mud season have started!  The other night I had to wait for 2 bunnies playing tag in the drive to move in order to park the car.  They were having so much fun and were so cute to watch.  Maybe we will have babies again this year.  

More to come....

January Accomplishments

I have had a busy month.  It's been bitter cold the whole month.  Almost everyday temps in the -double digits.  This is the weather I remember as a kid.  My fingers get really cold and painful quickly.  I had severe frostbite when I was 7.  I couldn't even hold a spoon.  This weather is just like it was then.  I remember that vividly!

Just what have I made you ask?  Lets take a peak! (hopefully lots of pics will be showing)

I wasn't going to make Bonnie's Celtic Solstice until she posted her clue with the 4 patches.  I decided to make mine smaller using 2 1/2" units instead of 3 1/2".  I haven't finished the top yet but am starting on the blocks.

pinwheel & chevrons

peaky & spike

Celtic Solstice

Here is the January block for Judy's (Patchwork Times) Scrap Challenge.  We share the same feelings with scrap quilts.  If I'm to shrink my stash I need to work way out of my box.  This challenge should help.

January organized scrappy

4 bonus corner triangles for each diamond

12 blocks later

This was a quilt as you go without any hand sewing.  It just needs binding. I used the bonus HST's for the corner stones on the sashing.  It's a very pretty baby quilt.  5 1/2 yards was used.  All from my stash!!!!

In between these I was playing with different blocks:

dancing stars

maple leaf

mini puddle jumping

I took Camille's Craftsy Class:

Hash Tag - class exclusive pattern

Swoon

mini swoon- just had to make it smaller after making the big one!

These are not all that I have done this month...more to come on that later....Dona

Side tracked...

Surprising how time flies.  I hadn't realized a month has gone by since my last post.

I have gotten side tracked with family history.  I took advantage of the few nice sunny days a couple weeks ago and visited some of my families cemeteries for pictures.  Of course then I had to post them on the family tree which seemed to bring up one question or another...that lead to another task which lead to another, etc.  Why is it that no matter what task we choose there are always loose ends to be put off until another day?

My work schedule has also been crazy.  Road construction season has started, it's everywhere.  My commute is 1/2 hr. one way on a normal day.  Depending on what time of day the drive is another 1/2 gets added.  I'm beat or hungry when I get home.  No energy to set up to sew.  Cool, damp, rainy weather doesn't help.  On the up side, the mountains are beautiful in their different greens.  Early mornings watching the fog burn off with the cardinals signing is awesome.   I just want to take in this beauty (can't see it when I sew).

This is my organized box of scraps less than 2" after I saw this post:

http://temeculaquiltco.blogspot.com/2013/04/instagram-i-am-adding-another-form-of.html  

I love mini's!  I have been know to work with 3/4" strips.  ( have an awesome one going right now, more later)  Most of my mini's work with 1" to 1 1/4" strips.  The "to do" list is some string blocks at some point.

 I started going through my "basket" and came up with this to be used as leaders and enders.  Of course once I started one I couldn't stop.  Sound like the "Lay's Potatoe Chip" ad.

These blocks are 2 1/2" x 2 1/2".  I searched for different bowtie settings.  I found one laying the blocks out like the left side picture.  Of course there is more to be added to the 4 bowties to complete the block.  I'll post more on that when I get to that stage.  I need to see if I have more FQ's or yardage of some of these.  The completed block uses 4 of the same print.  I'm still not comfortable with the scrappies.

  

In looking for "extra" fabric for my bowties, I found these:

They became another leader ender project. So far it has become this: (over 100 pairs)

Here's just 20 pairs laid out randomly.  This is going to be a good size quilt when done.

There isn't one print duplicated.  I think I was collecting for a true charm quilt.  Some where there is an applecore baggie that I knew was to be a charm quilt. 

  Oh, oh, oh... the sun is making an appearance...gotta go play.

Have a great day!

Recycled and reused

This was my grandmother's.  I have kept it for sentimental reasons but wasn't really liking the picture.  What to do, what to do?

I went looking for ideas and found these amongst the scraps and stash.  They kinda play nice.

The floral fabric is what I used as the curtains and the shower curtain in our bathroom.  I love the green and I'm very partial to teal, so I then made these:

I always find myself gravitating to making mini's.

Sorry it's a blurry picture but that is a dime.  Sew a few of these together and I have this:

It measures about 12 1/2" x 19 1/2".  I quilted it on the diagonal only in the green rows in both directions using 2 layers of felt.  Can you guess what I did next?

I wasn't so crazy about the teal but I figured I'd leave it.  I can live with it.  It's going in the bathroom and be the new home to my "stuff".  I don't put things on the back of doors.  It will dress up an empty wall.

When I finished this I enjoyed a bit of the beautiful weather we are having.  I had to check on a spot in the lawn that we have been watching.

Just as I snapped this picture the ground moved.  I'm gonna keep it a surprise as to what it is....no it's not snakes or mice!  I don't know how long it will be here though.  I'll try to keep posting about it.

Gotta go find another project to do.   Till later.....